The Algarve with baby

Next stop on our Europe trip with baby (now four months old) was the Algarve. We stayed in Lagos and Albufeira in particular and made several day trips from there. To sum it up, the coast is stunning and unique. You can go surfing, kite surfing, or even try out flyboard. But unfortunately it gets very busy during the season (June-August). Therefore, you need to get up early to find an empty beach.

Lagos

The town is touristy but really cute with white houses and houses with typical Portuguese tiles. There are several hipster cafes and skater shops. The main beach (Meia Praia) is very long and great for early morning walks with a baby carrier. So this is what I did almost every morning. If you want to spend the day at the beach: renting beach chairs will be helpful, as it often gets windy. Our favorite was the beach bed. Nomad dad could work from there and it had lots of space and shade for three of us.

We also visited some of the gorgeous bays between cliffs. But you need to be there at 7-8am if you want to be alone or at least with just a few people. After 10am all of the nearby beaches get very crowded.

Moreover, we did a boat trip to the cliffs and caves with our baby nomad. I just took our nappy nomad in a carrier – it was so easy 🙂

Once nomad dad met our hosts and was telling me about it during 3 days for hours. So I asked him how long he was talking to them if he has so much to tell from that conversation: for a few minutes! At this point we both realized how little social contact we both had. Although we had some interesting talks with our hosts and met several friends on the way, it is usually just three of us. Fortunately, this will change soon as we are expecting family and friends visiting us.

We had an apartment with sea views and a great view over the city. The main beach was 10-15 minutes walk away. The landlords, an older couple, was so welcoming and adorable! They organized a baby crib, a mosquito net and mosquito candles for our baby.

Price per night incl. fees: 74€

Albufeira

First of all, we did not stay in Albufeira city, rather a few miles away, next to Praia Coelha. It is important to know as locals refer to it as “the hell”. It’s a crazy party place for kids and super-crowded. So try to avoid it! However, Praia Coelho was the most remote beach we found in the Algarve. Almost every morning I went for a beach walk with the baby carrier on the beach or on the rocks. During the day we stayed in our great apartment and in the evening we explored nearby beaches. One trip included “flyboarding” (see the pictures). We did it one after another (as one of us had to stay with the baby). This was a crazy & fun experience!

The apartment was great for families with babies or kids: it had a graden! That is quite unique in the algarve as it gets really dry. The garden came with a terrace, hammock and deck chairs. As the house is located on a hill you can even see the sea from the garden! Therefore, it was the perfect place to work during the day. The landlord was a great storyteller and we spent a few evenings chatting with him. He also showed us around throughout a day trip.

Moreover, my husband randomly got to know another interesting person. He was as excited about him as I would be meeting celebrities 😉 It was a guy who worked for about 15 year for the army (e.g. in Afghanistan) and then for a big private military company e.g. in random African countries guarding Diamond dealers etc. Until that day I always thought these kind of people only exist in movies – they’re not!

Price per night incl. fees: 69 €

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